Graceland

Profiles Theatre concludes its 20th Anniversary Season with the World premiere of the comedy/drama Graceland by Ellen Fairey, directed by Matt Miller.  The production runs May 22- June 28, 2009, at Profiles Theatre, 4147 N. Broadway. 

Chicago's oldest cemetery is the backdrop for Graceland, the story of four lonely Chicagoans whose lives collide one August weekend while the Blue Angels airshow is in town. As fighter jets buzz the skies from dusk till dawn, estranged brother and sister Sam and Sara try to make sense of their father's recent suicide. Sara's one night stand with Joe, an aging lothario, brings further trouble in the form of Joe's mercurial teenage son, Miles. Graceland is a World premiere comedic drama about the loneliness of family, the tenderness of strangers and the unexpected benefits of bad decisions.

Ms. Fairey's first full length play, Girl, 20, was named one of the "Top Ten Most Promising Plays of 2006" by the Chicago Tribune in its World Premiere production by Serendipity Theatre. The production subsequently moved to Los Angeles, where it received rave reviews and was nominated for two 2007-2008 LA Weekly Theatre Awards for Best Director (Matt Miller) and Best Ensemble.

This is the fifth and final production of Profiles Theatre's 20th Anniversary Season following its acclaimed productions of The Wonderful World of Dissocia by Anthony Neilson, Great Falls by Lee Blessing, The Thugs by Adam Bock and Men of Tortuga by Jason Wells.  The titles for Profiles' 2009-2010 season will be announced soon.

The cast of Graceland features Profiles' ensemble members Somer Benson (The Wonderful World of Dissocia, The Thugs), Eric Burgher (The Wonderful World of Dissocia, Men of Tortuga) and Darrell W. Cox (Great Falls, Men of Tortuga).  The cast also includes Brenda Barrie as Sara and Jackson Challinor as Miles, both making their Profiles debuts.

"Profiles, to me, is such a distinctly Chicago theatre company- the whole vibe, the work they do- it's honest and tough," says playwright Ellen Fairey.  "When they told me they were interested in Graceland, I was thrilled.  What better place for a play about Chicago? Although I've recently moved to Los Angeles, Chicago remains my close to my heart and Graceland is, in a way, a kind of love letter to the city that shaped the way I write plays and who I want to write plays about."

"Ellen continued the development of Graceland last year with Profiles in mind, and we have watched the play grow beautifully as she has revised it throughout the season," says Profiles Artistic Director Joe Jahraus.  "This is the first time in our 20 year history that we have worked so closely with the playwright on the development of a script."

Tickets for Graceland are $25 for Thursdays and Sundays; $30 for Fridays and Saturdays. Tickets are available by phone, 773- 549-1815, or online, www.profilestheatre.org.  Performances are Thursdays-Saturdays at 8:00 p.m. and Sundays at 7:00 p.m.